Unique Girl Names Ending with A

  1. Azalea
    • Origin:

      English
    • Meaning:

      "azalea, a flower"
    • Description:

      Azalea is one of the fresher flower names, along with Zinnia and Lilac, that are new to the name bouquet — in fact, it entered the Social Security list for the first time in 2012. So if Lily and Rose are too tame for you, consider this brilliant pink springtime blossom with a touch of the unusual that has been growing in popularity.
  2. Odessa
    • Origin:

      Ukrainian place-name
    • Description:

      Odessa, a Ukrainian port city, was given its name by Catherine the Great, who was inspired by Homer's Odyssey. It would make an original and intriguing choice.
  3. Zinnia
    • Origin:

      Flower name, from German surname
    • Meaning:

      "Zinn's flower"
    • Description:

      Zinnia is an unusual floral choice with a bit more edge and energy than most and beginning to find its way onto namers' wish lists of botanical possibilities. Named after an eighteenth German botanist called Johann Gottfried Zinn, it appears in Roald Dahl's Matilda as the young protagonist's mother.
  4. Olympia
    • Origin:

      Greek
    • Meaning:

      "from Mount Olympus"
    • Description:

      With its relation to Mount Olympus, home of the Greek gods, and to the Olympic games, this name has an athletic, goddess-like aura, making it the perfect Olivia substitute.
  5. Calla
    • Origin:

      Greek
    • Meaning:

      "beautiful"
    • Description:

      Calla is a botanical name that is much more distinctive than popular Lily or similar Callie. Rarely heard today, it did appear in the popularity lists in the last decades of the nineteenth century.
  6. Oriana
    • Origin:

      Latin
    • Meaning:

      "dawn"
    • Description:

      Oriana is a dashing medieval name, with a meaning similar to Aurora. At this point, though, Oriana is much more unusual than Aurora and makes a unique choice if you're searching for names that mean new beginnings or dawn.
  7. Samara
    • Origin:

      Hebrew, Arabic
    • Meaning:

      "under God's rule, companion in night conversation"
    • Description:

      Alluring and lovely — and much more distinctive now than Samantha or Tamara. Samara is a city in western Russia, a winged seed like the whirlygigs that fall from maple trees, as well as a bona fide first name that could make a more unusual update on Samantha or Mara. It can also be a variant spelling of the Arabic name Samira or Sameera.
  8. Dara
    • Origin:

      Hebrew, Slavic or Irish
    • Meaning:

      "pearl of wisdom; gift; or oak tree"
    • Description:

      Though Dara was an (extremely wise) male figure in the Bible, this name feels mostly feminine to modern Americans. The Irish Gaelic version, Darragh, is well-used in contemporary times for boys.
  9. Nessa
    • Origin:

      Scandinavian
    • Meaning:

      "headlands, promontory"
    • Description:

      Like its cousin Tessa, Nessa -- a shortening of Vanessa or Agnes or Anastasia among other possibilities -- is an attractive nickname that can stand on its own.
  10. Vida
    • Origin:

      Spanish, Slovene, Lithuanian, Persian, Swedish, Serbian,"life, visible, willow, to see"
    • Meaning:

      "life, visible, willow, to see"
    • Description:

      Vida is a multicultural gem, familiar in a number of languages by not overly popular. It featured in the US Top 1000 in the first half of the 20th century, and in recent years, it has seen renewed interest.
  11. Eulalia
    • Origin:

      Greek
    • Meaning:

      "sweetly speaking"
    • Description:

      Eulalia is a melodious name with a southern drawl, thanks to those lilting double Ls.
  12. Pia
    • Origin:

      Latin or diminutive of Olympia
    • Meaning:

      "pious; from Mount Olympus"
    • Description:

      Soft name in the Mia-Nia-Tia family, Pia is heard in both European and Hindi languages.
  13. Adriana
    • Origin:

      Latin, feminine variation of Adrian
    • Meaning:

      "man of Adria"
    • Description:

      This a-ending feminine form of Adrian, from the northern Italian city of Adria, is a soft and lovely Italian choice. It appears as a character in Shakespeare's The Comedy of Errors.
  14. Henrietta
    • Origin:

      Feminine variation of Henry
    • Meaning:

      "estate ruler"
    • Description:

      Despite a return to such feminizations of male names as Josephine, Clementine, and Theodora, starchy Henrietta has not made it into that group. Still, if you look hard enough, you'll see that Henrietta has the same vintage charm.
  15. Celestia
    • Origin:

      Variation of Celeste, Latin
    • Meaning:

      "heavenly"
    • Description:

      Celestia is a heavenly name that sounds more ethereal than Celeste, Celestia might make a distinctive, feminine choice if your taste runs toward names like Angelina and Seraphina.
  16. Ginevra
    • Origin:

      Italian variation of Guinevere or Jennifer
    • Meaning:

      "white shadow, white wave"
    • Description:

      This lovely alternative for the Jennifer-lover ranks among the most popular girls' names in Italy. At this point in the US, the legions of Jennifers born in the 1970s are starting to become grandmas, so Ginevra might make an apt honor name for granny Jen.
  17. Priya
    • Origin:

      Sanskrit
    • Meaning:

      "beloved"
    • Description:

      Priya originated in India as a name derived from the Sanskrit word for "beloved." In India, where names are often given based on one’s birthday and horoscope, Priya is traditionally given to girls born in August. Priya is used in Hindu mythology as the name of a daughter of King Daksha—known for fathering 146 daughters.
  18. Lucinda
    • Origin:

      Variation of Lucia
    • Meaning:

      "light"
    • Description:

      Lucinda, an elaboration of Lucia created by Cervantes for his 1605 novel Don Quixote, is a pleasingly pretty alternative to Lucy. It was subsequently used by Moliere in his play The Doctor in Spite of Himself' (1666). More in tune with the times than Linda, Belinda and Melinda, it could be used to honor someone with one of those dated names.
  19. Juna
    • Origin:

      English, Latin
    • Meaning:

      "June"
    • Description:

      Juna, a variation of the newly stylish month name June, goddess name Juno, or literary Djuna, is among the fresher-feeling girl names starting with J. While Juna has never been given to more than 50 baby girls per year in the US, it's a popular choice in Germany, Switzerland and the Netherlands.
  20. Honora
    • Origin:

      Latin
    • Meaning:

      "woman of honor"
    • Description:

      Honora and Honoria are two ways of softening the severity of Honor, while retaining its righteous meaning. They were predominant until the Reformation, when the Puritans adopted the abstract virtue names, and were introduced to Britain by the Normans.